When red and white roses are mixed together, they say, “We are a great match”.

Peach roses say, “Let’s make this memorable.” They symbolize hope and caring.

By choosing the color you paint your roses with you can convey different messages. If you are making a card for your mother you may want to use pink or white roses. Use yellow to color roses for your best friend. Think about what the color says before you color your roses.

02/12/2019

Card making is a wonderful way to forget the stress of the day at your job and life. Once you start getting those creative juices going, you soon forget everything but what you are working on. Hours can fly by and the negative thoughts are soon forgotten. Years ago when I was teaching special needs for middle school learning disabilities and behavior disorders, I would come home and be stressed to the point I would want to scream, or drink a bottle of wine alone. Since neither was good for my health, I took up rubber stamping. I would pull out my stamps and start creating beautiful cards. Thanks to this, twenty years later I am neither an alcoholic, bald headed from pulling my hair out, in a mental hospital from the neighbors hearing me scream. See, stamping is good for your health.

all kidding aside, any creative activity helps reduce stress. In fact, Creative Art Therapy is being used in mental hospitals and in other ways to help get the mind off of pain. It was first used in 1930 by the Red Cross in hospitals for veterans. They found that creative activities helped reduce stress from the battle weary and help speed up recovery.

When you are involved in a creative project such as stamping, it helps remove negative thoughts and helps you relax. Stamping and card making is a creative activity that helps us remove the stress in our lives. We all know what illnesses stress can bring on. So, when you are stressed out and have dozens of things on your "To Do" list, set aside some time to set down and make a card. Do not feel guilty about the time you spend being creative. When you are not stressed, you will do much better at your job and other things you need to do in your life. You will be happier and those around you will be happier also.

So, make a card and make yourself feel better. Then send it on to someone to let them know you care about them and make them happy. It is a win, win situation!

If you have never tried stamping before, I will gladly get you started with beginner classes. If you are not in my area, I will try to get you in touch with a Stampin'Up independent demonstrator to help you learn to stamp. Just contact me.

The Stampin'Up kit of the month, Paper Pumpkin, is a great way to get started card making also. Everything is cut and ready to put together with directions on how to make the project of the month.

02/10/2019

Several new items have been added out to our Stampin'Up, Sale-A-Bration brochure this week, February 15th.. One of the items you do not want to miss getting is the Country Floral Dynamic Embossing Folder.

I want to share with you a technique I did using this beautiful product.

The roses and a few other flowers are raised much higher that the background flowers. They are beautiful. Try this when you get your embossing folder.

First, dust the card using your embossing buddy.

Using a dauber, ink the dauber with Versa Mark ink on the flowers that are raised above the others.

Sprinkle with clear embossing powder and shake off excess.

Using your heat tool, emboss.

Repeat this process and emboss the second time. This will raise the flowers even more and give them the appearance of glass.

On this card I used Blushing Bride cardstock and layered it with Rich Razzleberry. Then I used a Blushing Bride card base.

The greeting is stamped in Rich Razzleberry ink and punched with the Story Book Punch which will be available in March.

The Country Floral Dynamic Embossing Folder is a “must have” item to our stamping supplies. You can receive yours with a $50 order to earn a free Sale-A-Bration item.

01/24/2019

I love my photopolymer stamps and the ease of stamping with them, but I have had several customers tell me that they have problems with them sticking to the blocks as they get older. That has never been a problem for me because I take care of my stamps.

I do want to point out that the Stampin'Up clear stamps are made of a special formula, photopolymer. Most of the clear stamps from other companies are not made from this and can turn harder after they age. The Photopolmer does not.

Keep your photopolymer stamps clean by rinsing them off with warm, not hot, water. If they are really getting dirty you can use a little of very mild detergent on them. Rinse them well. Then pat the excess water off with a soft rag and let them air drive. Your Simply Shammy cloth works well for this. They will be very clingy again and like new. Yes, some inks will stain them, but it does not interfere with the clinging process.

When you have a stain on your stamps, do not use Stazon Cleaner on them. Do not use any alcohol base cleaners on them. Accept the fact they will stain.

After stamping, wipe the ink off the stamp using water and your Simply Shammy cloth. Do not wipe them with baby wipes.

Clean your stamps when several have used the stamps because most women use hand cream and this can cause your stamps not to cling well. They do need a more intense cleaning as in #1.

These are simple steps to keep your photopolymer stamps working like new.

01/22/2019

No matter how much experience you have stamping, you are going to make a mistake now and then. The most common mistake is getting a smudge on your card. It is disheartening to get a smudge of ink from your fingers on a card just as you finish.

Most new stampers would get upset and throw the card away. More experienced stampers can usually figure out a way to cover or get rid of that smudge. If it is really small, often you can take an extra fine sanding block and rub lightly over the smudge and it will erase. If you have an ink remover pencil from back in the typewriter days, that will work. As a warning, if you are using a cheap grade of cardstock, it will cause the paper to ball up. If you use Stampin’Up paper that has a coating on it, it will come off easily.

Another way to remove a smudge is to cover it up with an embellishment or a small stamped image. As an example, if it is a flower, punch out a few small butterflies and add those, using one to cover the smudge. Rhinestones and pearls are great to cover mistakes.

If it is a larger area, check to see if you can stamp a greeting on a tag and cover the mistake. Bows work great for this also.

When you make a mistake, often it is best to set your card front aside and come back to it instead of trying to fix it when you are ready to kick yourself.

Another common mistake we make is when we do not get an image stamped where the ink is distributed evenly. Now, if you use a Stamperatus, that is not a problem because all you need to do is add more ink to the stamp and stamp it again. If you do not have this great tool, remember, your cardstock has two sides. Turn it over and stamp it again. You can also darken the area not stamped well with the thin, writing end of your marker.

If that does not work, stamp the image again on a scrap of cardstock and fussy cut it out. Then add that to the image using dimensionals. If possible, just color and cut out the section that was not stamped correctly. This always adds interest to the image.

So, don’t get discouraged when you make a mistake. We all do. I have been stamping for twenty years and I still make mistakes. I have learned that sometime my mistakes make my card more interesting when I have covered up a mistake.

01/20/2019

When I first saw the heart set bundle in the new Stampin'Up Mini Occasional catalog, I skimmed over it telling myself that I did not need any more heart sets. I have heart framelits from the past as well as the old type Big Shot dies. As I started seeing some cards made using this bundle “Meant to Be’ I realized how great it is and how many different ways I could use it. Yep, I now have the bundle and love playing with it.

Even though this set can be used for anniversary cards, wedding cards, as well as to a card for a friend, naturally I had to use it to make Valentines. Here are a couple that I made this week for my Valentine class.

This card is so simple to make.

Cut a heart out of diamond glitter paper.

Stamp a heart in black ink using one of the hearts in the set, Meant to Be. Color the roses and leaves using your markers or blender pens. Your choice. I fancy cut that heart out.

Stamp you make me happy inside the heart.

Adhere designer paper from the All My Love Designer paper. Add a strip of Lovely Lipstick cardstock between the white cardstock and the heart paper. Lovely Lipstick is one of the new In Colors this year, 2018-2020.

Color the white organdy ribbon using your Lovely Lipstick marker. Tie a bow and add it to the card.

Add the White glitter heart using glue and the stamped heart with dimensionals.

Add a few rhinestones to add some extra glitter.

Here is another card I made using the set and I will send a tutorial later this week for this.

01/18/2019

Hard to believe that this time next month Valentine's Day will be in past tense! it is time to get those special cards made for your loved ones. Sure, you could go out and buy one, but a hand made card is from the heart.

I like cards that make me smile or laugh. I had fun making this one.

I love this silly Sale-A Bration set, So Hoppy Together It is one of the items that you can get free with a $50 order. You can not buy it, only get it free. This frog is the one on the unicycle. I just stamped and colored him then fancy cut him out.

The black and white background paper is Whisper White cardstock stamped in basic black I used the dragon fly and the bees. You do not have to stamp the whole piece of paper, only around the edges where it shows. I chose the Lemon Lime Twist cardstock for my second layer.

Using the wonderful Be Mine stitched Framelits, I cut the heart out in Lovely Lipstick paper. This is one of the new In-Colors. When you cut this heart out, you get a frame and a solid heart. I attached the stitched, scalloped frame and then on the solid piece stamped Happy Valentine's Day and added it to the center of the heart using pop-dots.

The hearts are punched out with a discontinued heart punch, but you can use the hearts in the framelits. I put one in the frogs hand and scattered the others. The frog is attached with double pop dots. Lovely Lipstick and Blushing Bride hearts are scattered on the card front and inside the card.

Inside I have another frog stamped and the verse " You are the best friend a girl can ask for"

All of these items can be found at my on line store. You can order yours now by clicking on Shop Now. You can brows the catalogs by clicking on catalogs. You still have time to get your Framelits, #148527 for $35 or the bundle with the framelits and the set of hearts. 150587 Meant To Be $53 The number for the free So Hoppy Together SAB set is #149725

Here are some advantages and details for joining Stampin’ Up! during Sale-a-bration 2018:

FREE shipping on the $175 in product. ($50 more in free products than usual).

Kit is $99 + tax or $129 + tax with the Craft & Carry Tote Bag.

Enjoy being a HAPPY SHOPPER - it's one of my favorite perks!

You decide how you want to run your business, whether you want a discount on your crafting supplies, run workshops and meet new people and new friends or maybe want to help contribute to the family income, that’s the beauty, you get to decide how you want to run it!

Your upline (me!!) is someone you can call upon to help you set your own goals, and give you suggestions on how to make them work.

No obligation - there is no obligation to stay, hold parties, do anything just because you took advantage of the deal.

Opportunity - those who chose to stay can enjoy an ongoing 20% instant income, having their sales count for hostess benefits and demonstrator commissions.

This is a great way to turn your hobby into a part time or even full time business. I can help you do that!

Click on Join Now and learn more about this and join my team. If you have any questions, email me at stampwithjoycepacer@gmail.com

01/12/2019

What is altered art? This is a question I am asked quiet often, especially since I have made a spot for this on my scheduled class calendar.

Altered art is not a new art. In fact, it was used by monks centuries ago. The materials that the scrolls were made from was very expensive and hard to come by. Often, they wrote over them with the faded inks from past works showed through the writing. It has been carried through out centuries. Basically, it is a way to recycle as we know it today.

Altered art is taking an object and altering the piece into a work of art. No two pieces will ever be the same. You can alter almost anything: bottles, vases and other glass pieces, picture frames, old art work, books, tins, plastic items, dishes. Check around your house and look at items that you are ready to pitch into the trash or send off to Good Will. I am sure you will probably find some interesting shape that you can turn into art work.

Here is an example. This is a vinyl tile that I found in a building supply store that I turned into a coaster by stamping on it and coloring with alcohol markers.

This is a 4 "x 4” tile. You could easily use a cluster of three or five and make a wall decoration for the kitchen. It was a sample and I took several and made them into coasters for a really cheap, but attractive and useful gift.

Altered art is a wonderful way to recycle. What do you have around your house that you can alter into art pieces?

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Disclaimer

This is my personal blog. I am an Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator and responsible for its content. Stampin' Up! does not endorse the use of or contents of the classes, services, or non-Stampin' Up! products I may offer here.